GIOVANNImItalianItalian form of Iohannes (see JOHN). The Renaissance painter Giovanni Bellini (1430-1516) and the painter and sculptor Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) were two famous bearers of this name.

GISBERTmGerman, Ancient GermanicFrom a Germanic name in which the second element is beraht "bright". The first element is probably a shortened form of gisil "pledge, hostage" (making it a variant of GILBERT), though it could be related to Gallo-Celtic gaiso "spear".

GISELLEfFrench, English (Modern)Derived from the Germanic word gisil meaning "hostage" or "pledge". This name may have originally been a descriptive nickname for a child given as a pledge to a foreign court. It was borne by a daughter of the French king Charles III who married the Norman leader Rollo in the 10th century. The name was popular in France during the Middle Ages (the more common French form is Gisèle). Though it became known in the English-speaking world due to Adolphe Adam's ballet 'Giselle' (1841), it was not regularly used until the 20th century.

GLADYSfWelsh, EnglishFrom the old Welsh name Gwladus, possibly derived from gwlad "country". It has historically been used as a Welsh form of CLAUDIA. This name became popular outside of Wales after it was used in Ouida's novel 'Puck' (1870).

GLÆDWINEmAnglo-SaxonOld English name derived from the elements glæd "bright" and wine "friend". This name was not actually recorded in the Old English era, though it is attested starting in the 11th century.

GLANVILLEmEnglish (Rare)From an English surname which was taken from a Norman place name which possibly meant "domain of (a person named) Gland" in Old French.

GLOOSCAPmNew World MythologyDerived from an Eastern Algonquian phrase meaning "man from nothing". Glooscap (or Gluskabe) was a hero involved in the creation myths of the Wabanaki people of eastern North America.

GLORIAfEnglish, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, GermanMeans "glory" in Latin. The name (first?) appeared in E. D. E. N. Southworth's novel 'Gloria' (1891) and subsequently in George Bernard Shaw's play 'You Never Can Tell' (1898). It was popularized in the early 20th century by American actress Gloria Swanson (1899-1983). Another famous bearer is feminist Gloria Steinem (1934-).

GLORIANAfEnglish (Rare)Elaborated form of Latin gloria meaning "glory". In Edmund Spenser's poem 'The Faerie Queene' (1590) this was the name of the title character, a representation of Queen Elizabeth I.

GLYNDWRmWelshFrom a Welsh surname which was originally derived from a place name meaning "valley water". This name is often given in honour of Owain Glyndwr, a 14th-century Welsh patriot who led a revolt against England.

GLYNISfWelshEither a variant of GLENYS or an elaboration of the Welsh word glyn meaning "valley".

GNAEUSmAncient RomanRoman praenomen, or given name, which is of unknown Etruscan meaning, though it may be related to Latin naevus "birthmark". A famous bearer was Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey the Great, a Roman general of the 1st century BC.

GOBÁNmIrishEither means "little smith" from Irish gobha "smith" combined with a diminutive suffix, or else derived from the name of the Irish god GOIBNIU (which is also a derivative of gobha).

GODFREYmEnglishFrom the Germanic name Godafrid, which meant "peace of god" from the Germanic elements god "god" and frid "peace". The Normans brought this name to England, where it became common during the Middle Ages. A notable bearer was Godfrey of Bouillon, an 11th-century leader of the First Crusade and the first ruler of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.

GODIVAfAnglo-Saxon (Latinized)Latinized form of the Old English name Godgifu meaning "gift of god", from the elements god and giefu "gift". Lady Godiva was an 11th-century English noblewoman who, according to legend, rode naked through the streets of Coventry to protest the high taxes imposed by her husband upon the townspeople.

GODWINEmAnglo-SaxonMeans "friend of god", derived from Old English god combined with wine "friend". This was the name of the powerful 11th-century Earl of Wessex, the father of King Harold II of England.

GOPALAmHinduismMeans "cow protector" from Sanskrit गो (go) meaning "cow" and पाल (pala) meaning "guard, protector". This is another name of the Hindu god Krishna. This name was also borne by the 8th-century founder of the Pala Empire in Bengal.

GORANmCroatian, Serbian, Slovene, MacedonianMeans "mountain man", derived from South Slavic gora "mountain". It was popularized by the Croatian poet Ivan Goran Kovačić (1913-1943), who got his middle name because of the mountain town where he was born.

GORDANmSerbian, Croatian, MacedonianDerived from South Slavic gord meaning "dignified". This name and the feminine form Gordana were popularized by the publication of Croatian author Marija Jurić Zagorka's novel 'Gordana' (1935).

GORDIEmEnglishDiminutive of GORDON. A famous bearer was Canadian hockey star Gordie Howe (1928-2016).

GORDONmScottish, EnglishFrom a Scottish surname which was originally derived from a place name meaning "spacious fort". It was originally used in honour of Charles George Gordon (1833-1885), a British general who died defending the city of Khartoum in Sudan.

GOREmEnglish (Rare)From an English surname meaning "triangular" (from Old English gara), originally referring to someone who lived on a triangular piece of land. A famous bearer is American writer Gore Vidal (1925-).

GORETTIfVariousFrom the surname of Maria Goretti, a 20th-century Italian saint who forgave her murderer on her deathbed. Her surname was derived from the given name GREGORIO.

GORONWYmWelsh, Welsh MythologyMeaning unknown. In the Mabinogion, a collection of tales from Welsh myth, he was the lover of Blodeuwedd. He attempted to murder her husband Lleu Llaw Gyffes but was himself killed.

GOROUmJapaneseFrom Japanese 五 (go) meaning "five" and 郎 (rou) meaning "son". This was traditionally a name for the fifth son. Different combinations of kanji are also possible.

GOTAMAmHinduismMeans "the best ox" from Sanskrit गो (go) meaning "ox, cow" and तम (tama) meaning "best". In Hindu texts this is the name of one of the Saptarshis, or seven sages. This name was also born by an early Indian philosopher who wrote the Nyaya Sutras.

GOTTFRIEDmGermanGerman form of GODFREY. This name was borne by the 13th-century German poet Gottfried von Strassburg and the German philosopher and mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz (1646-1716), one of the inventors of calculus.

GOTTLOBmGerman (Rare)Derived from German Gott "God" and lob "praise". This name was created in the 17th century.

GOTTSCHALKmGerman (Archaic)Derived from the Germanic elements god "god" and scalc "servant". Saint Gottschalk was a (perhaps spurious) 11th-century prince of the Wends who was martyred by his brother-in-law.

GRACEfEnglishFrom the English word grace, which ultimately derives from Latin gratia. This was one of the virtue names created in the 17th century by the Puritans. The actress Grace Kelly (1929-1982) was a famous bearer.

GRAHAMmScottish, EnglishFrom a Scottish surname, originally derived from the English place name Grantham, which probably meant "gravelly homestead" in Old English. The surname was first taken to Scotland in the 12th century by the Norman baron William de Graham. A famous bearer was Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the Scottish-Canadian-American inventor who devised the telephone.

GRÁINNEfIrish, Irish MythologyPossibly derived from Gaelic grán meaning "grain". This was the name of an ancient Irish grain goddess. The name also belonged to the fiancée of Fionn mac Cumhail and the lover of Diarmaid in later Irish legend, and it is often associated with gráidh "love".

GRANTmEnglish, ScottishFrom an English and Scottish surname which was derived from Norman French grand meaning "great, large". A famous bearer of the surname was Ulysses Grant (1822-1885), the commander of the Union forces during the American Civil War who later served as president. In America the name has often been given in his honour.

GREGORYmEnglishEnglish form of Latin Gregorius, which was from the Late Greek name Γρηγοριος (Gregorios), derived from γρηγορος (gregoros) meaning "watchful, alert". This name was popular among early Christians, being borne by a number of important saints including Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus (3rd century), Saint Gregory the Illuminator (4th century), Saint Gregory of Nyssa (4th century), Saint Gregory of Nazianzus (4th century), and Saint Gregory of Tours (6th century). It was also borne by the 6th-century pope Saint Gregory I the Great, a reformer and Doctor of the Church, as well as 15 subsequent popes.... [more]

GRIFFINmEnglishLatinized form of GRUFFUDD. This name can also be inspired by the English word griffin, a creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle, ultimately from Greek γρυψ (gryps).

GRISELDAfEnglish, Scottish, Spanish, LiteraturePossibly derived from the Germanic elements gris "grey" and hild "battle". It is not attested as a Germanic name. This was the name of a patient wife in medieval tales by Boccaccio and Chaucer.

GROVERmEnglishFrom a surname meaning "grove of trees" from Old English graf. A famous bearer was the American president Grover Cleveland (1837-1908), who popularized the name in the United States at the end of the 19th century. The name is now associated with a muppet character from the children's television program 'Sesame Street'.

GRUFFUDDmWelshWelsh name, the second element deriving from Welsh udd "lord, prince" but the first element being of uncertain meaning (possibly cryf "strong"). This was a common name among medieval Welsh royalty. Gruffudd (or Gruffydd) ap Llywelyn was an 11th-century Welsh ruler who fought against England.